The Suffolk Dialect: A Full Language that Needs Documenting Authentically

The Suffolk Dialect is a Full Language

Many people assume that dialect words are a collection of old ways of saying particular things. That the old words are just regional reflections of typical English vocabulary and that there is a word in a modern dictionary that is the accepted way of saying it now. In some respects that is true, we do indeed have old words for things which are still said now, just differently. There is much more to the Suffolk dialect than most people realise. It is not a collection of a few words, it is a full language.

Broad Suffolk is Still Spoken To This Day

Before I get into the depth of the language I need to state that even though the old Suffolk way of speaking is heard less and less these days thankfully it has held off from dying out completely. The mother tongue and native voice of Suffolk is very much still alive thankfully. You may not hear as much as it was once heard but it still thrives in certain places. The rural nature that grew this fascinating and vast language is the very thing keeping it alive today. In rural parishes, villages and areas of certain towns it is still very much being used. It may not be heard in the work place or on a trip to a large town, but it is still there. It is in the homes and hearts of those whose families that like myself were brought up to speak it daily. It is part of family life and an a direct link to our ancestors past.

What are the Hidden Nuances of The Old Suffolk Dialect?

This is often the part that gets lost in translation for those that claim to be experts in the old Suffolk dialect. Unless they have spoken it since birth, and have been brought up to use the dialect correctly then they sadly do not have the knowledge of the lived experience of the fully accurate usage of the language. I hear from many people that like myself have spoken the language their entire lives and are aghast (and sometimes deeply offended) at the misuse of our words and phrases. It takes a lived experience of the correct usage to understand the scale of how wrong someone impersonating it can stray for the truth.

What are the Main Causes of Using The Old Suffolk Dialect Incorrectly?

While some words can indeed easily be added into conversations, some words cannot. Then there are the full broad old Suffolk ways of speaking that need a full translation. That language can sound a world away from what you may have actually just heard and read. There are many nuances to our speech, the use of the accent within that speech and the intentional meaning behind the words. Not to mention how some words can be used alongside other dialect words easily, whilst to mix others would be frowned upon in old Suffolk dialect etiquette. Some words that are used in one setting or phrasing certainly would not be used in another context, however similar the wording might feel. I will be fully explaining this at a later date, believe me the subject of usage is a complex one.

Why Does it Need To Be Authentically Recorded?

With a language such as the old Suffolk dialect it is often still used by people today. Documenting it correctly means that those native speakers are being represented correctly and in a truthful, authentic way. Imagine someone was trying to teach others something about yourself. Something which is a very a large part of your identity, then they get it wrong. You may not have the social standing or the platform to explain the inaccuracies and yet you are being perceived in a way by people that has been misinformed. Having that sense of self eroded by misinformation is maddening.

Another very important reason why it needs to be recorded correctly is down to the heritage and history aspect. As the language slowly disappears, as it appears to be doing now, little by little. It will be lost entirely if not preserved. To many of us from old Suffolk families and lineage our culture is very important to us. It is a vast part of our identity and it connects us deeply to the land here and most of all our ancestors. Our ancestors worked this land for hundreds of years. They shaped the Suffolk landscape and gave their blood sweat and tears to the soil, sometimes their own lives. Being respectful of a culture that has gone before is vitally important. Misrepresenting their voice and language would be an insult to their name, work and the families that descended from them.

The Language of A Regional Culture

A language of a people is its backbone. It is the way they communicated through time gone before and within our time now. It is a language and a cultural treasure. To hear someone speak so fluently and broadly Suffolk that you cannot even understand them is the exact reason why is more than a collection of words. Those words hold meaning, intention, laughter, joy, sorrow and an explanation of a Suffolk soul through its voice.

The Suffolk dialect is deep. As deep as the soil and the roots beneath our feet. As deep as our connection to where it all began.

Sarah Ann Shave